In The Thick

Maria and Julio ring in the new year with two ITT All-Stars! They're joined by Renée Graham, columnist for The Boston Globe, and Terrell J. Starr, senior reporter at The Root and host of the Black Diplomats podcast, to talk about the latest in politics. They get into Donald Trump's ongoing attempts to interfere with the election ahead of the Georgia Senate runoffs, along with the GOP senators aidi...

Happy New Year fam! Maria and Julio reflect back on 2020 and how we all found joy and hope amidst the pain and intensity of the past year. They revisit some of the top ITT moments from interviewing power couple Wajahat Ali and Dr. Sarah Kureshi about COVID-19 to talking about the history of Black women in America and their legacy of resistance with Daina Ramey Berry and Kali Nicole Gross to remini...

To end 2020, Maria and Julio talk with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed, epidemiologist and author of "Healing Politics: A Doctor's Journey Into the Heart of our Political Epidemic." They reflect on a year with the coronavirus, how politics and politicians failed us, and how the 2020 election played out in Detroit, Michigan. They also dive into the current healthcare system and what is needed to turn a vaccine...

While Futuro Media is off for winter break, Maria and Julio check in to wish our dearest ITT listeners a safe, loving and peaceful holiday. And remember to stay tuned to your feeds, because fresh episodes will still be dropping in the next week! We'll see you next year, familia. Until then: ¡Nos vemos! Shout out to Jungle Fire whose Jingle Fire song is featured in this message! The same band you h...

Maria and Julio are joined by Alina Das, professor at the New York University School of Law, co-director of the NYU Immigrant Rights Clinic, and author of the new book, No Justice In The Shadows: How America Criminalizes Immigrants. They unpack the history of criminalization of Black and Brown immigrant communities and discuss what immigration policies to expect from the Biden-Harris administratio...

In the last Sound Off of 2020, Maria and Julio get real about the media. They talk about mainstream coverage of Donald Trump and where the news will go from here. They also dig into the latest news on the COVID-19 vaccine and the inequities incarcerated individuals face when it comes to vaccine rollouts.  ITT Staff Picks: - Representative Deb Haaland made history this week for being the first Indi...

This week we're talking about what immigration policy could look like under the incoming Biden-Harris administration. Maria and Julio are joined by immigrant rights activist Erika Andiola, chief advocacy officer for RAICES (Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services) and host of their podcast Homeland Insecurity, and Nana Gyamfi, attorney and executive director of the Black Alli...

Maria and Julio dive into some of the biggest stories of the week! They give an update on the latest with the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. and talk about how President-elect Joe Biden's latest nominations will impact the current health crisis. They also discuss the latest with the case of Army specialist Vanessa Guillén and give their thoughts on the new Netflix biopic "Selena: The Series."  ...

With a January special election for two senate seats approaching, this show is all about Georgia. Maria and Julio welcome Aimée Castenell, southeast region communications director for the Working Families Party, and Anjali Enjeti, co-founder of the Georgia chapter of They See Blue, an organization for South Asian Democrats. They talk about who is on the ballot, voter suppression efforts by the GOP...

Maria and Julio dive into the latest in White House political chaos, including Attorney General William Barr's statement that there was no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the election. They also talk about President-elect Biden's transition and the coronavirus surge, especially how COVID-19 is unfolding in Mexico. ITT Staff Picks: - Included in today's show is a clip from Angela Davis' first...

Maria and Julio welcome Zerlina Maxwell, host of "Zerlina" on Peacock, and Nathalie Baptiste, a reporter with Mother Jones. They talk about the latest on the coronavirus, President-elect Joe Biden's cabinet picks, and the havoc Trump is wreaking in his last days in office. ITT Staff Picks:  - Nathalie Baptiste writes about the Trump administration's escalation of lame-duck executions — at a time w...

Maria and Julio are joined by Valarie Kaur, renowned Sikh activist, civil rights lawyer, and author of the new book See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love. They reflect on Valarie’s activist roots and her experience writing her book. They also discuss America’s history of state-sanctioned violence against communities of color and explore how revolutionary love is a force for...

Maria and Julio are joined by co-hosts of ITT's cousin podcast, Politically Re-Active: W. Kamau Bell, stand-up comedian and host and executive producer of the CNN docu-series United Shades of America, and comedian and writer Hari Kondabolu. They unpack the mainstream media’s post-election narrative and COVID-19 inequities. They also dive into the FBI’s 2019 Hate Crime Data and talk about comedy as...

Maria and Julio give an update on America’s political crisis and discuss Republican efforts to stall the transition. They also talk about the political crisis in Peru and hear from special guest Ana Lucía Mosquera Rosado about what organizing in Peru looks like. Plus, they look at the latest with the COVID-19 pandemic.  ITT Staff Picks: - “Trump’s Attempts to Overturn the Election Are Unparalleled...

Julio is joined by guest co-host Jamilah King. They talk with ITT All-Stars Andrea González-Ramírez, senior writer at GEN by Medium, and Dr. Christina Greer, associate professor of political science at Fordham University and co-host of the podcast FAQ NYC, on the Biden-Harris transition, their upcoming administration's policies, and Puerto Rico’s election results. They also discuss the latest on t...

Maria and Julio discuss the Republican Party's efforts to undermine the election results. They also give updates on the Biden-Harris transition process and the country’s COVID-19 surge.  ITT Staff Picks - “There’s no saving America’s soul. There's no restoring the soul. There's no fighting for the soul of America. There’s no uniting the souls of America. There is only fighting off the other soul o...

Maria and Julio are joined by Anoa Changa, a freelance journalist based in Atlanta covering movements and electoral justice, and Aída Chávez, a journalist at The Intercept covering Congress and the impact of public policy on diverse communities. They talk about the 2020 election results and the Black, Indigenous, and Latinx voters who turned out at record numbers. They also look at what’s next in...

Maria and Julio discuss the ongoing 2020 election results and the BIPOC vote. They hear from Grecia Lima, national political director for Community Change Action, on Latino electoral power in Arizona. They also unpack the historic wins in down-ballot races on the state and local level. Did you miss our live election night show? You can still catch it here! ITT Staff Picks: - “A record number of Na...

Join us for our Live Election Night Show tonight at 6pm ET! Maria and Julio will be joined by ITT All-Stars to provide live election analysis and coverage from a Black, Indigenous and POC perspective. Trust us, you don't want to miss this one! For more info and to RSVP, click here. We also want to hear from you before our show tonight! Call our ITT hotline and tell us one thing you're worried abou...

Maria and Julio break down the electorate in the final ITT show before election day. They also hear from Astrid Silva, former ITT guest and immigration activist in Nevada, on voting in her state. RSVP for ITT's Live Election Night Show: Join us on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd starting at 6pm ET! Maria and Julio will be joined by ITT All-Stars to provide live election analysis and coverage from a Black, Indig...

Maria and Julio are joined by Mike Madrid, co-founder of The Lincoln Project and partner at the public relations firm GrassrootsLab, and Lili Gil Valletta, CEO and co-founder of the big data analytics firm Cien+ and CulturIntel. Together, they unpack the nuances of the Latino voting bloc and discuss the Lincoln Project’s strategy for the 2020 election. They also talk about the recent surge in COVI...

Maria and Julio unpack the final presidential debate of 2020. They talk about each candidate’s response on immigration policy and the Black Lives Matter movement. They also hear from U.S. Representative Sylvia Garcia on voting and voter suppression around the country.  This episode was mixed by Rosana Cabán. RSVP for ITT's Live Election Night Show: Our next virtual LIVE ITT show is on election nig...

Maria and Julio are back with the second virtual live show of 2020! They’re joined by ITT All-Stars Imara Jones, creator of TransLash Media and host of the new TransLash podcast, and Jenni Monet, journalist and founder of the new weekly newsletter Indigenously, to talk about the state of our nation. They discuss issues of voter suppression, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Indigenous vote. They also...

Maria and Julio discuss Biden and Trump’s competing town halls and the start of early voting. They hear from Anoa Changa, an electoral justice reporter for Prism who is leading the As The South Votes video series for Scalawag Magazine. Maria and Julio also talk about this week’s SCOTUS confirmation hearings. ITT Staff Picks: - Nicole Guidotti-Hernández, a voter in Georgia, documents experiencing v...

ITT has a sneak peek for our listeners of a new podcast that Futuro Studios is producing with WBUR: Anything For Selena. Journalist Maria Garcia goes on a quest to understand the cultural impact of the one and only Selena Quintanilla. The series weaves Maria’s personal story as a queer, first-generation Mexican immigrant with cultural analysis, history and politics to explore how, 25 years after h...